The man was being treated for burns to his face and hands, which he allegedly got when he tried to steal cables from a kragbox.
“On Monday, 16 October, there was an electrical outage reported in the Scottsville area,” the City of Cape Town’s Wayne Dyason said.
“Upon inspection, an Electrical Artisan from the City of Cape Town found an open mini-substation’s door. There were visible signs of arching inside the mini substation that was located on the sidewalk close to Milton Road in Scottsville. A copper electrical jumper cable was also removed/stolen from the mini substation.
“Members if the City of Cape Town’s Metals Theft Unit was contacted and proceeded to the complaint site as well,” he said.
Officers then visited a local day hospital, where the suspect was found.
“The local day hospital was visited where a 38-year-old male that resided in Scottsville was admitted for burn wounds to the face and hands. A criminal case was opened under the Criminal Matters Amendment Act and is being investigated by Kraaifontein SAPS.
“Members of the public who did not wish to be identified reported to the Metals Theft Officer that the person who was tampering at the electrical box was electrocuted, but was taken to hospital by other unknown people prior to our arrival. The incident apparently occurred shortly after 3pm,” Dyason said.
The estimated repair costs amount to about R10 000, he added.